The Healthier We Are, the Fatter We Get

29/07/2016 13:30 BST
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Updated
29/07/2017 10:12 BST

Look around you on social media, or in the news, or in a lifestyle magazine, or on a breakfast show or in fact literally anywhere and you would be forgiven for thinking that we have become a society of Amazonian athletes.

From recipes using kale, to HIIT workouts; from tips on juicing and cleansing, to blogs on healthy eating - evidence of healthy living abounds.

Look around your office right now. See anyone in 'athleisure'? Yep even the fashion industry has made it ok to wear trainers to work and gym gear as everyday wear.

Yes we really are a nation of gym bunnies.

Except for this.

Over 60% of the UK population are overweight.

24.8% of adults are obese.

According to Public Health England by 2050 the prevalence of obesity is predicted to affect 60% of adult men, 50% of adult women.

Indeed England's Chief Medical Officer Dame Sally Davies said in 2015 that obesity is the 'biggest threat to women's health'.

What the hell?!

It would seem we are less likely than it might seem to die of a kale overdose anytime soon.

So how can we rationalise these two contradictions?

My own recent research into young women's relationship with health, revealed an attitude to health bordering on obsession.

One young woman I worked with had to reassure her mum who was worried about her constant dieting.

In her own words she said she had to explain to her mum that her health regime was 'not a diet, it's a way of life.'

But when we look at the actual eating habits of this same young woman, we can see a big difference in her perception of what she eats and the reality.